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needed to expand outwards.
Dr. Mairi Hilton of Oceanites, said: "Finding
a penguin colony only happens once every
three or four years. So this is a really big
privilege for us to be able to do that. That
was a really good day."
Viking is known for its commitment to
science, allowing a large number of
researchers to tag along on its Antarctic
voyages, and recently endowing a chair at
Cambridge University. Researchers from
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Scripps
Institution of Oceanography, are regularly on
board, too. Scientists have access to state-of-
the-art wet labs and are converting the PCR
labs on board the expedition ships into an
advanced scientific environment where
visiting scientists contributing to the
Genomics at Sea Programme (GASP) are able
to research the genetic response of
phytoplankton populations to environmental
change without the months of delay
transporting samples to a distant shoreside
laboratory.
Viking's expedition ships are the only
civilian vessels allowed to release weather
balloons on behalf of NOAA (National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration),
and the US National Weather Service has
sanctioned the vessels as official weather
stations. This means they regularly
launch large, biodegradable latex balloons
from each ship that are kitted out with
meteorological apparatus to measure factors
such as humidity, pressure and temperature.
Viking is also the first company to publish a
scientific paper after submarine passengers
spotted the rare Giant Phantom Jellyfish—a
bizarre 30 -foot creature resembling a giant
ribbon attached to a flying saucer.
"With our third season in Antarctica
underway, we are pleased to have supported
another significant scientific development
that will allow for further understanding
of the region," said Torstein Hagen, Viking
Chairman and CEO. "We look forward to
supporting other critical research
opportunities on future voyages."
Chinstrap Penguin
feeding a chick,
Antarctica
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